New item increases headroom on NSX!

[SpeedDemon]

Hi all,

I've been searching for months for ways to increase headroom on the NSX, I'm about 6'2" tall and I found I had to "scrunch down" and keep my seat at a less than optimal position to clear the roof on my NSX-T. Racing was looking impossible as I simply couldn't realistically drive in the car with a race helmet.

Anyways, I just wanted to let everyone know that Dali Racing recently came out with a new item that substantially impacts headroom. It's a seat cushion, replacing just the lower pad of your stock seat (and keeping the rest of the seat (back, sides, etc) intact. It takes about 20-25 minutes to install with regular tools, and you can replace the stock pad if you want to return to stock. It comes in both leather & ballistic nylon. With the leather one installed, you'd have to specifically look for it to notice the seat is different (assuming your leather is black!)

The pad seems to add close to 2"! I went from having to "scrunch" with a reclined seat, to sitting my seat straight up, straightening my back/sitting tall, and the top of my hair still not touching the roof.

Other benefits - by sitting deeper in the seat, the side bolsters at the bottom of the seat hold you tighter & keep you in place better.

I can now wear a race helmet and it just lightly brushes the top of the roof depending on how I sit or turn my head. The difference is night & day. I haven't had any issues with the firmness/comfort of the new pad, it's a little more firm but after 1.5 hours of driving, I don't feel any worse than with the stock seat (but my spine appreciates sitting straight & spread out)

.

Anyways, I have no affiliations with Dali Racing, am just a really happy camper with the new-found headroom.

If anyone's interested, the cloth (ballistic nylon?) version is $160. The leather version (which I have) is $275. Here's the link-


http://www.daliracing.com/nsxcatalog/furniture/racer_racing_cushion.cfm

If anyone wants to see a picture of the leather version & it isn't up on the Dali site, email me & I'll send some pics.

Best,
Marc



[This message has been edited by SpeedDemon (edited 02 January 2001).]

 

[HapaHaole]

Do you have pics of the Leather version?

I am 6'2" and I have had that problem with the cars I have been test driving.

If it takes off even 1" I would be happy.

 

[rquintero]

Wow, that is the best piece of news I've had in a while. Any chance you can post a pic? I wonder if they can match the black perforated leather in the later cars...

 

[rquintero]

Marc, forgot to ask: how difficult was it to install? Any chance of damaging anything while swapping?

 

[Nsxotic]

Boy, Ralph.... when I saw this post I almost called you..... It must be sent from the heavens..

I knew you'd be happy.... this has been your issue since the day you drove home. I'm happy you've finally found the answer and we don't have to worry about you selling it...

------------------

Todd Arnold
http://www.geocities.com/nsxcessive/index.html

 

[rquintero]

Hey Todd,

How've you been? Was hoping to catch you in Sebring last Sunday!

Anyway, thanks for the thought, I'll buy something from Dali Racing as soon as they get rid of that %!$@#$ navigation menu on their site - some web designs are just unbecoming, Dali's is just outright irritating and makes you want to punch something.

In any event, if the black leather is not perforated to match my car, I'll order the plain leather one from their !@@#&! site then invest in an icepick and vent out on the new cushion - that way I can kill two birds with one stone

Later,

Ralph

 

[SpeedDemon]

Originally posted by HapaHaole:
Do you have pics of the Leather version?

I am 6'2" and I have had that problem with the cars I have been test driving.

If it takes off even 1" I would be happy.

It's closer to 1.5" to 2", so you should be very happy

.

Here's a pic of the leather seat (below). It was taken at night and the camera's flash was on, so you'll notice the closer seat looks grey. But you can see the seat bottom is approximately the same color as the rest of the seat. The passenger seat looks darker since it's not as close to the flash.

The slot in the middle of the seat is for a racing harness. It's not normally as noticeable as in this picture where the flash is reflected off the aluminum of the seat bottom.

The leather on the seat starts smooth. As I've sat on it & worn it in more (but it's only been a little over a week) it's started to gain wrinkles. This is a good thing, it makes it blend a little more with the passenger seat. When I first got the seat pad I thought it would look noticeable that it was different than the passenger side because I was really staring at it & noting any little differences, but in practice it really isn't noticeable. Even when I've pointed it out to passengers they still don't get that it's a different seat bottom.

Ralph, I didn't do the install (but watched). It took around 20-25 mins. The instructions are pretty simple & are located on the Dali site, maybe on NSXPrime too. You don't have to actually remove the seat from the car as described. Just take out the bolts so you can angle the seat away from you & keep the seat in the car.. You basically have to get under the seat in order to unhook a plastic guide at the back of the seat. Other than some tugging to get the stock pad off the first time, there isn't much to it. & yeah, that navigator on the Dali site sucks rocks.

If anyone has any other questions, let me know. If the pic isn't giving you the answers you need due to the flash/night setting, let me know and I can take a pic during daylight this weekend.

Tall folk, rejoice

Marc


[This message has been edited by SpeedDemon (edited 02 January 2001).]

 

[nsxtasy]

I notice the cap and the umbrella are color-coordinated with the seats, too...

 

[SpeedDemon]

Originally posted by nsxtasy:
I notice the cap and the umbrella are color-coordinated with the seats, too...

Grin.. Good eye

If only the passenger side had more legroom (darn factory subwoofer setup!) I could move the passenger seat up & throw stuff behind that seat, too

. I need to find a place to put the adjustable timing retard computer (about 4" wide by 1.5" tall by 7" deep), leaving it back there coulda been a good place.

Marc

 

[rquintero]

Thanks for the pic, Marc. If convenient it'd be nice to see one in natural light, but I'll be ordering it no matter what.

Question though: at 6'2, can you really drive with your seat forward enough to fit a cap & umbrella behind or is it just because you had the T off? The cushion can't make that drastic a difference!

 

[SpeedDemon]

Originally posted by rquintero:
Question though: at 6'2, can you really drive with your seat forward enough to fit a cap & umbrella behind or is it just because you had the T off? The cushion can't make that drastic a difference!

The way you see the seat moved-up in the picture is actually the position I drive it in, targa on and off! As far as headroom, yes, I have enough with the cushion to support that position/angle.. Of course, everyone's built different, torso length vs. leg length can be quite different on two 6'2" people..

My legs are pretty bent in that position but I like having "leverage" to work the pedals, I don't like my legs fully extended when pushing a pedal all the way in.. More than that though, it's really that if I moved the seat further back, my arms would be too stretched, and I want a little slack (again, leverage) to be able to turn the wheel..

Ralph, I think it was you actually who told me to try to be able to touch the wheel with your wrists while sitting back.. (I can't quite.. But close).

Now, if someone came up with an item that let us telescope the steering wheel even further back.. Then I would move my seat back further (and would be in heaven even more

.. I like having the steering wheel close to me, it's far easier to turn..)

When someone else buys the cushion, I'm interested to see if they notice as much difference as I did. Please post your results.

Thanks
Marc